"Not that I know of. And believe me, I'd notice."
Silence settled between us. I knew there was more we could ask Andrew, and I wanted to make sure we did it before we left, so we wouldn’t have to bother him again. I was a detective now. I needed to act like one.
"Do you have any idea why a werewolf would be doing this?" I asked, my fingers wrapped tight around the warm teacup.
He took a deep breath, his hands clasping then unclasping on the table. "There are two likely reasons," he began slowly. "One is that it's a newly turned werewolf who's lost control. They might not understand what they're doing or how to manage it yet."
Noted. And, honestly, the idea that someone might be doing this accidentally sat better with me than that someone was doing it on purpose to be cruel.
"And the other reason?" Beth fixed her attention on Andrew.
He looked to the floor for a moment. "The other possibility is far more sinister. It could be a werewolf attacking people on purpose."
"Intentionally?" My stomach churned at the thought.
"Yes. And if that’s the case, we’re dealing with something much, much worse." He shook his head. "But that seems far less likely. Being a werewolf and attacking people when you’re out of control in the beginning, is awful. You remember absolutely everything the next day. You remember the teeth, the claws, the blood… and it’s all so terrible that it stays with you forever. And then you remember what it was like whenyouwere attacked and turned. The pure and utter horror. The sounds of your screaming. It stays with you, too, and makes you feel like you’re an even bigger monster.”
"Was it like that for you, Andrew? When you turned?" Beth asked.
Andrew's eyes held a distant look for a moment. "I was attacked many years ago, back in England," he said quietly. "The werewolf who turned me tore into me before I even realized what was happening. That night I truly thought was the worst day of my life, until I lost control during my first change. Both are horrors that I’ll carry with me forever."
"Is that why you moved here?" Those must’ve been terrible memories.
"Exactly. This town has always been more... open to those like us." He offered a half-smile.
"Must be hard, carrying that with you," I said.
He nodded, his face solemn. "It is. That's why I shift regularly. To keep the beast in check. If I don’t, well..." He trailed off, but the implication hung heavy between us.
"Angry and snappy, right?" Beth asked.
"Something like that." Andrew chuckled dryly. "But I make sure to do it far from the city, away from people."
"Sounds lonely," I murmured, thinking about how isolation can gnaw at a person's psyche.
"Sometimes. But it's necessary." He looked out the window where his husband was now kneeling in the garden, hands deep in the earth.
"Thank you, Andrew. Really, we appreciate your help," Beth said as she stood up, signaling it was time to go.
"Of course." He rose to see us out. "I wish I had more answers for you."
We stepped out onto the porch, and Andrew gave a wave before heading back inside. Walking down the driveway, I was suddenly having trouble seeing a werewolf as anything but a victim. I looked back at the house, then at Beth.
"Where do we go from here?" I asked, a sense of urgency pressing against my thoughts.
Beth shrugged, her expression as lost as I felt. "I don't know. I really don't know."
EIGHT
Emma
We pulled silently out of Andrew’s neighborhood. All the pretty little houses disappearing behind us. I tried to shake off the strange feeling that had settled inside of me since hearing about Andrew’s tragic past, but I was having trouble. I couldn’t believe we’d even considered him a suspect.
Still, there was a werewolf out there attacking people. We just had to find him or her.
I glanced at my phone as it buzzed on the dashboard, squinting to read the new message. "Beth, the apartment manager just texted. I can pick up the keys now. Do you mind if we swing by?"
My son and his girlfriend were officially moving to Mystic Hollow. They’d finished their study abroad and graduated but decided to spend a little longer exploring Europe rather than going to their graduation. I’d been a little sad about not getting to see him walk, but I also understood the opportunity they had. I was just glad that the place they’d decided to settle down in after that was here.
